You Own This Insurrection, Donald
Even before the 2020 presidential election, Donald Trump refused to agree to abide by the results, but only if he lost. As the pandemic made it more difficult for people to vote and mail-in voting was encouraged, he claimed there would be mass fraud should people be allowed to vote by mail. And when he lost the election by almost 8 million votes and 74 Electoral College votes, he refused to concede. In fact, he broadcasted loud and clear, the election was stolen from him. He and his legal team filed 63 lawsuits in 5 battleground states. Courts dismissed or rejected all of them. And, when that didn’t produce the results he wanted, he unsuccessfully pressured the Georgia Secretary of State, Republican Brad Raffensperger, to find 11,780 votes (one more than Joe Biden’s victory) to overturn the state’s election results. In Trump’s mind, the only thing left was to lean on the Senate and the House and on Vice President Mike Pence to reject the certified Electoral College votes, overturning them in his favor. The Congressional counting of the votes, which, in the past had been a pro forma event signifying the peaceful transfer of power, became a lightning rod for conspiracy theorists who vowed to protest this January 6, 2021 ceremony.
Earlier that day, Donald Trump gave an impassioned speech, filled with lies, to thousands of supporters. Riled up by his words, they walked down Pennsylvania Avenue to the US Capitol yelling “Take back the steal!” Thousands went further and broke into the Capitol building, breaking glass windows, yelling and screaming, while Congress was counting the Electoral votes. They broke into the Senate and House Chambers as the Capitol police spirited away legislators. And four civilians and one Capitol police officer died in the violence.
We must hold Donald Trump accountable for inciting this insurrection. He was not alone. His son, Donald Jr., Rudy Giuliani, and Alabama Congressman Mo Brooks also stoked discontent at that rally. They, too, are responsible, as are legislators like Senators Ted Cruz and Josh Hawley.
Characteristically, Trump refused to take any responsibility for his actions. He stated, “If you analyze my speech…everyone said it was totally appropriate.” He reiterated his claim that attempts to impeach him (now, for the second time) is “the greatest and most vicious witch hunt in American history.”
For some Republican legislators, this was the straw that broke the camel’s back. Outgoing Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, made it clear his disdain for the president’s actions and stated that he would allow any Senator in the Republican caucus to vote as they saw fit on impeachment. The third-ranking Republican in the House, Lynne Cheney (R-WY) announced she would vote for impeachment stating, “The President of the United States summoned this mob, assembled the mob, and lit the flames of this attack. … None of this would have happened without the President. The President could have immediately and forcefully intervened to stop the violence. He did not. There has never been a greater betrayal by a President of the United States of his office and his oath to the Constitution.” Cheney would later be censured by the GOP for her remarks and stand.
Donald Trump is now losing the support of his Republican Party. If GOP leaders in Congress want to rid the party of Trump’s influence and the autocratic effects of his rule and rhetoric, now’s the time to do it. If they refuse to convict him for impeachable offenses, he will continue to define the Republican Party, steering it even further to the extremes. This will give white supremacists a toe-hold on American politics for years to come. Donald Trump has trampled America’s democracy, and he has taken part in sedition and encouraging insurrection. This time, his actions are clear.
This poster is part of a series of posters about the sorry state of American political discourse. Jeff Gates does these under the guise of the Chamomile Tea Party. This poster is part of a group of images he’s been doing since the beginning of 2020 about the election, the pandemic, and social justice. Download a high resolution copy of this poster for free. In fact, all Chamomile Tea Party posters are free to download under a Creative Commons license.
Follow the history of our country’s political intransigence from 2010–2020 through a seven-part exhibit of these posters on Google Arts & Culture.